Broncos coach Josh McDaniels this morning said he has no regrets with the way he and team management handled the Jay Cutler saga, and blamed the broken relationship with the Pro Bowl quarterback on a failure to communicate.

“When it became obvious that it wasn’t going to be resolved in the way that we were trying to resolve it, and I think at the point it became apparent and clear that we weren’t going to work out, the mindset was kind of, ‘What are we waiting for?’ ” McDaniels said in his first news conference in Denver since being introduced as the head coach Jan. 12.

The team Thursday traded Cutler and a fifth-round draft pick to the Chicago Bears in exchange for two first-round draft picks, a third-round pick and quarterback Kyle Orton.

Orton has not yet arrived in Denver, but is believed to be traveling here today. McDaniels said Orton and Chris Simms will compete to be the team’s starting quarterback.

McDaniels also described his first three months as head coach as a “whirlwind” — not surprising considering he started his tenure by releasing much of the defense, signing more than a dozen free agents, not to mention the very public feud with the team’s starting quarterback.

McDaniels, though, said several times that he would not have changed anything.

“There’s tough decisions to make and there are some easy ones, but there are a lot more difficult decisions you have to make on a daily basis, and if you’re afraid to make those decisions, then you shouldn’t do this and you shouldn’t be in this line of work,” McDaniels said. “We’re looking forward to moving on with our team, and like I said, we’re excited.”

The Broncos now have the No. 12 and No. 18 picks in the draft that begins April 25 and will have five selections in the first three rounds.

WASHINGTON — Thirty games into the 82-game NHL season, and nearly six weeks after the Matt Duchene trade, Avalanche general manager Joe Sakic discussed the state of his team before Tuesday’s 5-2 loss at the Washington Capitals.